indianarchie Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 I found this site, which shows you how to install and run Linux from your USB flash drive. http://www.althack.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=24&Itemid=27I have a 1 GB flash drive and I am curious to try this. But one of the requirements is to format the USB drive. Now, I want to know what the effect of formatting my USB drive will be. Will it still be usable after the format? Can it still be recognized by windows after i format it, but before installing Linux on it? What about after installing Linux on it? Say, i format it and install linux on the drive. The total used space then comes to (assume) 200 MB. So i still have around 800 Megs free. Will i be able to use this free space normally, in windows or will it be usable only in Linux?? Has anybody tried this before? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJM Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 (edited) I’ve used the HP USB disk storage format tool on a Sandisk 256M flash drive.If you format it as FAT or FAT32 Windows will still recognize the drive, and yesYou will still be able to use the free space. As long as Windows recognizes the diskformat ( FAT, FAT32 ) (or NTFS for winXP) it will appear as just another hard drive with a bootable OS (Linux). Do not format it to NTFS for Linux. Win XP reads and writes to all three file systems while Win9xand Linux only read and write to FAT and FAT32 Edited March 14, 2006 by RJM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LLXX Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 Format as FAT32 for the best compatibility.USB drives can be formatted just like harddrives and floppies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EchoNoise Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Answer to your Topic...No... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaclaz Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 (or NTFS for winXP) NEVERformat a USB stick (i.e. flash memory) as NTFS (or, in Linux, as REISERFS) they are semi-journaled or journaled filesystem, you can WEAR OUT your stick in a few hours.Under Windows XP, you will need to use the EWF (Enhanced Write Filter) from Windows Embedded to prevent NTFS to continuously write to your stick.It is OK to use NTFS on USB Hard Disks, of course.The most compatible format is FAT16, not FAT32, as some motherboards (elder) won't boot from a FAT32 formatted stick.Read these:http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?showtopic=16186http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?showtopic=16239jaclaz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJM Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Just follow the artical that you quoted http://www.althack.com/index.php?option=co...id=24&Itemid=27and you'll be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carne Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 (edited) hm Edited May 2, 2006 by Carne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stead Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 Answer to your Topic...No...LoL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EchoNoise Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 Well, they wanted an answer didn't they ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phkninja Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 Most people have answer yes. mmmmm....... this is intresting as I have come across a few manufacturers who specifically say NOT to format their usb flash drives as it will render the hardware useless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maelstorm Posted May 5, 2006 Share Posted May 5, 2006 Interesting.I've formatted USB flash drives with UFS file systems. The only problem is that Windows can't read UFS. Oh well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EchoNoise Posted May 6, 2006 Share Posted May 6, 2006 er... why would you format your usb sticks with anything else other than fat32 is beyond me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdohnert Posted June 16, 2006 Share Posted June 16, 2006 In short, no formatting it will not destroy your flash drive.er... why would you format your usb sticks with anything else other than fat32 is beyond me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
janus zeal Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Ive formatted sandisk, lexar, belken, and a few others. there is no resion why formatting it would make it unuasable.so, yes, windows will be able to read/write it after the format. and after the linux install, if its not turned to ext2/3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taltamir Posted September 15, 2006 Share Posted September 15, 2006 (edited) 1. Formatting is harmless2. Only format usb drives as FAT323. You would have no problem using the extra space even after you install linux, just don't use it all up (as linux might need some of that space. Edited September 15, 2006 by taltamir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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